Take along Ice skaters

You know how when you are at a restaurant or at the doctors office and the kids start getting restless and bored?
Well, here is a fun little toy that you can take along with you anywhere to help entertain them.
It fits in a mint tin.

And it is pretty easy to make.

What you will need:

- A mint tin (as in an Altoids mint tin or something similar)

- Computer and printer

- Pliers

- Paper clip

- Glue stick

- Magnets (note:  I had to use some fairly strong magnets for it to work well)

- Scissors

What to Do:

- First I did a search on the internet for an ice skater image that I liked.

- I had to resize it to about 1 1/2 inches

- Then I made a copy of the image and flipped it.....so it looked like a mirror image (shown in the photo below)

- I lined them up so that the edge of each ice skater was touching.

- Next print the ice skaters

-  Now its time to pull out those handy dandy scissors and cut them out.

-  Next grab your pliers and paper clip.

-  Take your paper clip and straighten out one end of it with the pliers. (After I straightened it I bent the very tip of it over to help reduce the risk of my kids accidentally getting poked by it.)

- With the other end of the paper clip use the pliers to twist it until it looks similar to the photo below.

- After twisting the bottom to look like below, try to make sure that it is flat on the very bottom of the paper clip...this is the part that will help keep the ice skater standing up.

- Now, fold your cut outs in half at the points where they meet.

- Then coat the inside of the ice skater with glue and place the straight end of the paper clip inside of each skater.

And that is pretty much it.

- When your kids want to play with it they stick the magnet(s) on the underside of the tin bottom (or lid) and the ice skaters on the opposite side. So they can guide them around from the underside of the tin.

- And when they are not playing with it just put the skaters inside of the tin and close the lid and stick it in your purse or pocket.

-And if you wanted to I'm sure you could use some scrapbook paper and modge podge to decorate the outside of the tin too.  =)

My kids love playing with this.  And since there are 2 ice skaters and a top and bottom to the container I chose, 2 kids can play together.

And the ideas with this are endless....

you can do ballerinas, cars, animals, bugs, dinosaurs.....


Have fun with this and if you have any questions feel free to ask away!

Paper Bag Fall Tree

Help your Children decorate for fall with this easy craft.

What you'll need:
-Brown paper lunch bags
-Scissors
-Glue
-Paper (Fall colors)

 The how to:

1- Cut lunch bag into half inch strips.  Start at the opening and cut half way down the bag.

2- Open bag and stand it up.

3- Hold base of bag with one hand and twist the middle of bag to create the trunk of the tree.

4- (example of finished trunk)

5- Twist two of the bag strips together to create branches.

6- (example of finished branches)

7- Rip strips of colored paper into tiny pieces and glue them all over the branches of the tree.

Done.

Seed Paper Card

For Spring I thought that it would be fun for the kids (with some adult help) to make some cards with seed paper as part of them.

What You’ll Need:

- Scraps of construction paper

- Blender

- Packet of flower seeds

- Wooden spoon

- Water

- Dish rag

- Colander/strainer

- 3 towels

- Pieces of felt (optional)

- Scissors

- Blank card or a piece of card stock

- Glue

- Pen/pencil

The How To:

- First tear your construction paper into small pieces and put them in your blender.

- Then add enough water to cover the paper and then blend it up.

I was really hesitant to do this in my blender, but it didn’t hurt my blender at all.

- If needed you can add a little more water to it.

It should look something like this:

-  Next, unplug your blender.

- Now add some seeds to your paper mixture.

- Then gently mix the seeds into the mixture.  Be sure to use your wooden spoon for this!

- Next I put my dish rag in the bottom of the colander/strainer and then poured the mixture out of the blender onto the dish rag.
This is to help drain some of the water off of the paper and keep it from falling through the holes in the colander/strainer.
I usually let it sit like this for 5-10 minutes to help drain as much water as possible.

-  Then I place a towel down on the counter (mine is the black one)
- On top of the towel I put the piece of felt (optional)
- Next comes the pouring of the paper mixture out of the colander and onto the felt.
- Now, using your hands, gently spread the paper mixture out on the felt.


- Then I take one of my other towels and put it on top of the paper and gently press on it to help absorb water off of the paper.  When that towel is wet I change it out for my other towel.  I do this a few times through out the day to help speed up the drying process.  And then I let it  sit out over night uncovered.

- Another way to help speed it up is by using a hair dryer on it.

- When it is dry it will be like stiff paper.  Decided what design you want to create with it then draw or trace it on to the seed paper.
- Next cut it out.

- Lightly glue the seed paper on to your card/card stock.
- Then draw (or have your children draw) the rest of your picture with markers, crayons, colored pencils, etc.
- On the inside be sure to put a note in it that the seed paper can be planted and they can grow their own flowers with some TLC.

Journal Jar

I have always had kind of a hard time writing in a journal.  Can’t think of something meaningful to write about or it just seems that my same-old-same-old day after day routine wouldn’t be interesting enough to write down.

Well, here is a way to get ideas of what to write.  A great way to help your kids and future family to know about you…..a journal jar.

You don’t have to decorate your jar, but I chose to make it a little more pleasing to the eye to have sitting out.  I added scrapbook paper and ribbon to it….super easy.

What You’ll Need:

- A jar (I used a canning jar found at the grocery store)

- Mod Podge (I prefer mat over the glossy finish)

- Sponge brush

- Scissors

- Scrapbook paper

- Ribbon

The How To:

- First trace the lid of your jar on to your paper.  Then cut it out.

- Next ‘paint’ mod podge all over the back of your paper cut out with your sponge brush.

- Place the paper on your lid and then paint mod podge on the top of your lid.  Be sure to ‘paint’ the edges of the paper well with the mod podge.

- While that is drying.  Cute some ribbon to tie around your jar. And then tie it on.

- When the lid is dry you can then place it on the jar.

Now here comes the fun part of filling the jar……below are some great ideas to help you get started on your own jar.  You can add new ideas or remove the ones that don’t apply to you.

- Write or print the following ideas (that are at the end of this post) on to paper of your choice.

- Then cut, fold, and put them in your jar. And then your journal jar is all set!

When you start to put your journal jar to use….don’t think to hard about the topic that you pull out of it.  Write down the first thing that comes to your mind. Every little tid bit recorded will help your family and future generations to know you better.

Now all you need is a pen and some paper to start recording YOUR story on!  =)

IDEAS/TOPICS for YOUR Journal Jar :
My favorite holiday
Nickname’s
Summer time fun
Favorite Music
What I like to do in my spare time.
Most embarrassing moment
My childhood Best Friend.
Clothing styles when I was 16.
We went camping….
A typical Saturday for me.
My very first memory
at Grandma’s House….
My favorite road trip
The first time I kissed a boy
Going to the county fair.
Christmas as a kid
My childhood house
My favorite home as an adult
When I got engaged..
Donuts
What we did all summer.
If I had a day all to myself.
Visiting a foreign country
My hairstyles.
The first time I sewed…
Christmas as a mom.
Reading books to my kids.
My wedding day.
Foods I love.
Foods I hate.
When I was 12….
Childhood pet.
Sports I can play.
I cried.
Grandpa.
5 things I wish I’d done, but I was too scared to.
the first time I voted.
our childhood car.
I lied.
A trip to the beach.
I was in the school play.
Hidden talents.
songs I still have memorized.
the price of food from a grocery store.
Someone I love passed away.
My baby was born.

Mosaic

A beautiful and creative project using a few simple supplies.

What you'll need:

-Colorful Magazine Ads

-Scissors

-Glue

-Paper Plate or White Card Stock

The how to:

-Cut the colorful magazine adds into long thin strips, then clip those strips into small squares.

 -On the back of the paper plate/card stock,lightly pencil an outline of your pattern.
(Or wing it like I did)

-Then start gluing the squares into a beautiful pattern.

Magnetic Bookmarks

My oldest (who is a book worm) loved this idea. Now when she accidentally drops her book or if her little sister pushes it onto the ground, hopefully, she won't loose her place as easily.

What You'll Need:

- Cardstock or other stiff paper

- Scissors

- Ruler

- Magnetic tape

The How To:

- First decide how big you want your bookmark. Mine are 2 inches by 6 inches. Then with a ruler draw the size of your bookmark on your cardstock.

- Next cut out your bookmark.

- Carefully fold it in half so the ends match up evenly.

- 1. Now cut a piece of your magnetic tape that will fit the width or you bookmark. Then peel the paper off the magnet and stick it onto the inside of one of the ends.

- 2. Cut another piece of magnet of the same size as the first. Set this (with the sticky side up) on the magnet that you already stuck on to let them line up so they will be magnetized to each other correctly.

- 3. Now (leaving the magnets together) take the paper off the second magnet.

- 4. Fold your paper in half...onto the sticky side of the second magnet.

And thats it!!! Now you can put it to use!

Paper Stain Glass Window

What you'll need:
-White Paper
-Crayons
-Vegetable Oil
-Cotton Balls
-Iron & Ironing Board (Optional)

The how to:
-Print out or draw a picture on your white paper.  Then color it with crayons.  The picture looks best if you color all the white areas and you color very dark with the crayons.
-(This step is optional)  Next I like to Iron my colored paper.  This melts the crayon into the paper and gives it a smooth look.  When you Iron you paper make sure you place a blank paper underneath and over the top of your colored paper,  then Iron it.
-Use the cotton balls to spread the vegetable oil onto the paper.  Spread the oil on both sides of your drawing until the paper is saturated.
-Use some paper towels to wipe of any extra oil.
-Your picture is ready for hanging!